Love Transcends
by TalksToSelf
Summary: A few days before his birthday Fay has a shocking announcement for Kurogane. Reviews encourage me to be nice to your favourite characters
1. Heartbreaking news

A/n: Just a little muse on what I thought Fay's 'second' curse was… except it takes place before we found out about the first. Deal with it.

Chapter 1: Heartbreaking news

Rushing around the town, the blond was worse than a five year old on sugar, even Mokona had a hard time keeping up with the young man as he sped through shops. When they had arrived in this world they had handed over previous coins to be converted into the right currency, and had found themselves quite well off. As a result they had been able to get a hotel suite with four rooms, which Kurogane had been thankful for, sharing with the kid and the mage often cramped his style and the princess seemed to sleep all day, they had also enough money for some decent clothes… cue Fay excitedly running around helping Sakura choose some very cute, if insanely lurid, and slightly OTT outfits.  
"He seems… more energetic than usual." Syaoran said surveying his 'mother' figure. It was true, the sad mask Fay usually wore was almost constant nowadays, and it angered the warrior a great deal. The happier the blond acted, the sadder he was.  
"There's something wrong with him." Kurogane said eventually. He had been surrounded by this Mamagoto(1) for a long time, and had learned to tell when they were lying, or at least hiding something, which with the blond was more often that not.  
"Ne Kuro-rin doesn't Sakura-chan look lovely?" he asked, draping himself over Kurogane as he spoke. The ninja pushed him away abruptly, and with ease, he was quite a lot bigger than Fay.  
"Yes she does, can we stop shopping now?" He grumbled without even looking at the girl. Syaoran's jaw was almost on the floor.

Sakura was modelling a red dress, it was a LITTLE too big for her, hanging off her poorly-defined curves like a curtain, but the white jacket, complete with angelic wings she wore open over it seemed to compensate for that. Her short hair was pinned back with a red beret, and Mokona peeked out of her handbag (also new and also red). The material for the dress looked surprisingly comfortable, the unusual heat of this world meant the clothes were made of lighter material than in most places, but for the men it was still stuffy and undesirable inside their clothes. Guys wore off the shoulder wrap around clothes, a little like togas, with belts. Kurogane had quite blatantly refused to wear a 'dress' and wore his hakama underneath it.  
"Are you sure I look okay?" She asked nervously when they left. Syaoran nodded mutely and Kurogane grabbed him by the shoulders.  
"C'mon you." He grunted, steering him around. Fay skipped beside them.  
"We should get some food! But Sakura you should be very careful not to spill on that dress."  
"I will!" she nodded furiously. "Be careful I mean."  
"And Mokona will spill!" Mokona cheered. They came across a small 'peet-ser-ee-a' none of them could read the sign but knew it smelled nice, so went in. Sakura and Syaoran found seats for them while Kurogane and Fay went to get food. No sooner were they out of ear shot than Fay addressed him.

"Kurogane." It was a rarity he was called by his real name, and knew from the mage's tone of voice that he was for once in his life being deadly serious. "We need to talk." Was all he said. Kurogane gave a curt nod. "Not here, tonight. After the kids are in bed." Kurogane nodded again. And with that they ordered a strange messy food that looked like it had been run over with a steam roller a few dozen times.

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"She sleeps like a baby." Fay said with a smile. He had just returned from checking on Syaoran, Mokona and Sakura. The only light on in the lounge was a very small electric lamp, that emitted and basked them in a yellowish glow.  
"Don't say stupid things, babies wake up at all hours of the night screaming, she sleeps constantly. And no before you ask you can't adopt an actual baby. " Kurogane said, pouring himself a drink. There had been a rule instated somewhere along the journey that no alcohol was allowed near Mokona, Sakura or Syaoran, but he saw no harm in a drink after they had fallen asleep, he poured another glass and thrust it at the magician who sat beside him. Since his earlier announcement of wanting to talk, nothing had changed, in front of the 'children' (Kurogane was unsure how two adolescents and a thing counted as their 'children') he had acted bouncy and boisterous, so much so he'd even spilled his drink on himself, now however his serious face was back on. His elbows were on his knees and his eyes cast to the ground.  
"Kurogane." He said again. Despite his frequent complaining at the stupid nicknames Fay gave him, Kurogane felt his insides twist at that name. It simply did not feel right, perhaps because of the icy tone of his voice.  
"Hn?" was all he replied.  
"I turn 21 in three days time." This came as no great surprise to Kurogane who had assumed him to be around 22 or 23, though they had never asked each other such trivial things. So he was a little younger than that…  
"So?" Fay raised his head and drank deep from his glass.  
"Sakura-chan and Syaoran-kun… Mokona too. How do you feel for them?" He asked randomly.  
"What do you mean?" Kurogane asked, curious as to how, after not even half a glass he was talking apparent nonsense, cryptic circles that would make even Yuuko proud. His smile was back, Fay's trademark smile that hid everything.  
"I mean if I weren't here, would you protect them?"  
"Yes." He said very bluntly.

"Promise me?" Kurogane nodded and surveyed Fay with interest, though he knew something was going on in his mind, he would not pry, but since the mage had no apparent desire to speak, he had to try.  
"If there's something on your mind, say it." He ordered.  
"It's okay, with that promise I don't need to worry. When I'm gone you'll take care of them." Fay smiled sincerely and it caught Kurogane so off guard he nearly didn't take in what he had said. When it sunk in he glowered.  
"Gone? You're going nowhere." He grunted firmly. The brief content look that had graced Fay's features was gone, he looked calm, but distant as though talking of something he'd overheard on the radio.  
"I am. My life is at its ending." He said calmly. Kurogane faltered, gripping his glass despite wanting to throw it at the other man.  
"Idiot." He mumbled. "Don't say such stupid things."  
"It's true." Fay said slowly. "In a couple of days I will go to sleep, and not wake up. My lifespan ends in three days." He held up three fingers that cast a large shadow on the wall behind them, before taking another sip of his drink.

"You can't possibly know that!" Kurogane growled angrily.  
"I've always known it. On my 21st birthday, the third of this month… 3:07am exactly the time of my birth I will die." His voice was still calm, and the lamps glow seemed to make the eerie conversation almost sickening.  
"The hell!" Kurogane snapped, standing up so abruptly he knocked the table over.  
"Kuro-pon please be quiet you'll wake the children." Fay teased. Kurogane reached down and grabbed Fay by the collar of his shirt, lifting the magician clear off his feet.  
"What the hell are you talkin' about you're gonna die you moron!" He demanded angrily, though he was mad he kept his voice down, apparently he didn't want the minors to overhear this either.  
"When I was a child. A curse was laid upon me." Fay said simply, apparently not bothered at being dangled above the ground by his taller companion. "A seal if you will, like the one on you." Fay reached his fingers up and trailed them over Kurogane's forehead where he knew Princess Tomoyo had placed a seal when she'd asked him to stop killing.

"I've always been aware of this, it's not something that particularly bothered me until I started this journey. But it doesn't matter, I can rest easy knowing you'll protect them on their quest. You're so brave Kuro-chu!" He cheered. Kurogane dropped the smaller man as though he were hot.  
"You knew… you knew this whole damn time?" He asked quietly, but angrily.  
"Yes, I didn't see the point in upsetting anyone, so I kept it to myself. I've written a letter to each of you they will be on my desk that night." He smiled. "Don't be sad Kuro-chan."  
"Shut up." He snapped. "Just… just get out of my sight." Kurogane demanded, silently furious. Fay knew this was not the easiest time, he stood up and nodded.  
"Goodnight…" He said, and left the warrior to his turmoil.

Magic. It had to be magic. Anything else and Kurogane knew he would have been able to point a sword at it and banish whatever threatened the ones he cared about. Over time he had gradually come to care for the Princess, the kid, the magician… hell even the white thing, and he knew he'd have laid down his life to protect them. That was what Tomoyo's lesson had been, true strength, defending those you love. However… magic was magic, and he was no magician. He saw no way he could change this prophecy and though the thought of the 'family' without Fay scared him, somehow the thought of life without Fay scared him even more.

A/n: Aww! Nooo! -hugs Fay- what's gonna happen to our favourite bishie!? This is a story with pretty magics in it… so don't despair. (1)Mamagoto Japanese family setting.


	2. The last 2 days

A/n: Aww. This chapter actually makes me cry. ME the damn authoress. You've been warned, tearjerkingness.

Chapter 2: The last 2 days.

Syaoran was not stupid in the slightest, and over breakfast that morning he knew something had happened. Fay seemed again overly-cheerful and smiley, but even now Syaoran could detect the 'something wrong' that Kurogane had mentioned. Kurogane himself was stabbing at his breakfast… which would have been commonplace if he weren't eating cereal, and was splashing milk all over Mokona, who didn't dare to tell him off. Sakura seemed cheerfully unaware of all this commotion and smiled, discussing animatedly with Fay what accessories would look best with her complexion. Syaoran sweat dropped overhearing the conversation… how had he ever mistaken Fay for straight? The guy was as obvious as Yukito.

"Kurrrrro-pon! What do you think?" Fay asked looking at Kurogane. "Can Sakura-chan and I go shopping again?" he wheedled. In the depths of his mind the pissed off warrior vaguely wondered if the magician was sick enough to make something like this up, and yet half expecting to see the grim reaper looming over him with a scythe in his left hand.  
"Do what the hell you like." Kurogane growled menacingly. Fay seemed to overlook the anger to take this as a yes and grinned.  
"Yay! Thank you Kuro-rin." He cheered and he dragged Sakura and Mokona up and out before either could say anything. Syaoran sat in the awkward silence for a moment before daring to ask.  
"Kurogane-san. What happened?"  
"What? Nothing." He grunted. "No big deal." He tried to shrug it off.  
"I won't force you to tell me… but true strength means facing the things you don't want to." Was all he said. For a young boy he was wise, and that pissed Kurogane off a bit more. He did the only thing he could do, having been shown up by a younger boy, he stalked off to his room like a moody teenager.

He remained there for the rest of the day, even after the three got home from shopping. Syaoran didn't disturb him at all until the evening, when Fay asked politely if someone would tell him dinner was ready. Even then he barely noticed what he ate. Since today was the first of the month, and ending hurriedly, if what he'd said was true Fay only really had two nights and one day left with them. Technically the third was his last day, but he would go at 3:07am right? That was early morning.  
"Aren't you hungry Kuro-tan?" Fay asked softly.  
"Hm." Was all he said, and finished his meal, despite everyone else having eaten, and retired to the lounge. He could hear them laughing and having a good time, (occasionally Mokona made a high pitched squeak sound) and knew that that's what Fay had wanted. That's why he'd not told anyone, because he'd wanted the last few days to be happy. Who was he to ruin that? Nobody. Kurogane decided. He was nobody. Nobody to Fay.

He stood up, abandoning his plate and went into the main room. He found them there, gathered around the coffee table, which someone had righted since last night, playing a game. The game looked rather morbid in all honesty, involving a cardboard patient having various essentials removed by a shaking pair of tweezers Syaoran held. It lit up and made a BLEEP noise causing him to jump.  
"Agh." He complained.  
"MURDERER!" Scolded Mokona jumping on his head. Kurogane said nothing and sat beside Fay on the couch. Sakura was sat on a chair next to them, and Syaoran was half sprawled across the carpeted floor.  
"No money for Syaoran-kun!" Laughed Fay. Sakura touched the boys hand gently and smiled.  
"It's okay, you weren't planning on being a surgeon anyway." She said consolingly.

Kurogane even dared to have a go, but failed miserably, at which Fay and Mokona had teased him mercilessly. He had then opted to sit and watch with folded arms, only joining in when the cards were brought out.  
"I like this!" Fay cheered after their second round of SNAP! A game that (To Kurogane's disappointment) didn't really involve snapping anything. "Family fun!" Kurogane had noticed however, that the princesses head had been lolling, and she'd not 'SNAP'ped once in the last half hour. He knew she was going past her limit, and realised with a jolt it was after midnight. One day left.  
"Come on, you three should sleep." Kurogane grumbled, picking Sakura up. She flopped lazily in his arms.  
"Thank you Kurogane-san." She said sleepily. Syaoran waited until they'd gone before he patted Fay on the shoulder.  
"You two made up then?"  
"Hm? Oh Kuro-puu's just mad at me. He'll calm down." Fay answered honestly.  
"Hope so." Syaoran looked at Mokona "You sleeping with me again tonight?"  
"Yes, Syaoran looks very lonely when he sleeps." Mokona hopped up onto Fay's lap. "So does Fay… but Fay can stay up late with Kurogane." The white creature kissed Fay on the cheek softly, before jumping onto Syaoran's head and following him into his bedroom.

It seemed to take an eternity to make sure the Princess was asleep, because he had to prod her, remind her to brush her teeth, and remind her to change her clothes. In her half-slumbering state she tried to change her teeth and brush her clothes. Kurogane wasn't normally the one who did this, usually it was Fay but with his impending departure less than 27 hours away… he shook his head not wanting to think about it, before tucking her in.  
"You did well." Whispered a voice from the doorway. He realised Fay had been watching the entire time. They slipped out quietly, switching the light off. "She gets a bit upset if nobody sees her off to bed, sometimes Syaoran will do it though… you really will be able to hold things down?"  
"I don't have much of a choice." he grumbled, sitting back on the sofa. "You'll… go quickly then?" He asked out of morbid curiosity. His voice was quiet as though he didn't dare ask.  
"Yes, like I said, I want to go in my sleep so… I'll just fall asleep and not wake up. It's why I've always been so reckless when fighting… I knew I couldn't die then." His voice was also soft, knowing this could not be easy to hear. "You shouldn't be saddened, we all have our time."  
"21 is WAY too young." He growled at him. Having lost both his parents early, knowing Sakura and Syaoran had lost both their parents early… and now losing Fay? It was too cruel. As though Hitsuzen had a hitlist.  
"I've known younger." Fay said, laying back and closing his eyes gently, thinking about his past.

"There's really nothing that can be done then?" The ninja cut him off, to prevent him zoning out.  
"Nothing." He said weakly, his voice didn't shake but sounded so hopeless that Kurogane felt his own heart being wrenched from its ribcage. "There's no magician stronger than the one who placed the curse on me. Nothing can be done." He mumbled, almost defiantly.  
"Do you have any plans…?"  
"No… like I said I've written a letter to each of you and plan on going in my sleep. I want the kids in bed before me though." Kurogane nodded, he could understand that he wanted to see them off one last time and tried to swallow the lump in his throat. "As for getting rid of the body you don't have to worry." He still spoke in such a calm manner. "Twelve hours after the time of death… that'll be at 3:07 in the afternoon, my magic will disperse and the body will disappear." Fay found it slightly strange that he was referring to himself as 'the body'.  
"You scared?" Asked Kurogane, trying to find his voice.  
"A little." Was the reply. The two sat in an awkward silence for a few moments before Fay did something that took Kurogane by complete surprise. He lay his head on the other man's chest and just closed his eyes. Kurogane was unsure how to react, so just allowed it.

"How about… we do anything you want tomorrow." he suggested eventually, as the fair haired man didn't show any signs of moving. Technically he meant today, since it was after 12, but… oh well.  
"No." Fay yawned. "We're looking for Sakura-chan's feather."  
"That can wait… do they even know it'll be your birthday?"  
"No." Fay said again. "But there is something I want tomorrow." Kurogane waited for it, aware that knowing Fay it would be something ridiculous. "I want to make sure we don't fight." He raised his head and brushed his lips briefly against Kurogane's cheek. Kurogane wanted at that point to tear the blond's lips off and shove them where the sun didn't always make rainbows, but that would have contradicted with his request.  
"Fine… no fighting." He mumbled.  
"Promise?" Pouted the childlike bishonen. Kurogane nodded slightly frustrated. "Thank you Kuro-myuu!" He cheered, before standing up and yawning over dramatically, reaching his fingers up to brush the ceiling. "Night night." And with that he skipped off to bed. When he was sure he was gone, Kurogane raised his fingers to his cheek and touched the spot where Fay had effectively kissed him. If he weren't dying… he'd kill him.

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If someone had asked you how you wanted to spend your last 24 hours alive, I doubt most people would want to trudge around an unfamiliar town for six of those hours in the heat, searching in vain for something they had no clue where to look for with a child who didn't speak their language. However, Fay was perfectly happy with this, even without speaking, Syaoran and Fay rarely got to spend time alone together… He looked at the boy beside him, full of hope and determination, and wondered if that determination would pay off at the end of the ordeal.

"If we get separated we meet up at the hotel at 5 o clock." Had been Kurogane's orders before they set off that morning, it was unusual of him to care about trivial safety, and Fay smiled, assuming he was taking up the role of 'caring' parent aswell as 'protecting'. This was not, however, Kurogane's reason. His reason was rather simple, and no sooner had they set off around the town, he kidnapped Mokona and Sakura, steering them forcibly down an alleyway.  
"Uhm… Kurogane-san we forgot…" Sakura started seemingly thinking he was some kind of humongous idiot.  
"I forgot nothing." he said gruffly. "I'll make this brief. Mage birthday tomorrow. Us shopping today. Got it?"  
"No." Sakura said blinking in confusion. Kurogane smacked his hand against his face, palm first.  
"Okay… tomorrow it's the Mage's birthday. So you and me are gonna get some stuff in for a party tonight." He said slowly.  
"And me!" Mokona chirped. Kurogane glared.  
"I only brought you so we could translate." He said. Mokona didn't seem offended by this in the least and began chattering.  
"We should get streamers OH and party poppers… AND SAKE!" it added. Kurogane sighed, he was surrounded by idiots. Sakura smiled at him.  
"You know… you act tough but you're unexpectedly nice Kurogane-san." She smiled, and took his hand. He would have been touched, if it weren't for one thing.  
"What do you mean ACT!" He roared. She giggled and slid her small hand into his, leading him into a shop. It was clear from the word 'go' that Kurogane had no shopping instincts whatsoever, like most men (excluding Fay) so Sakura did most of the choosing, holding his hand the whole time.

--------------------------------

"Any luck finding the feather?" Kurogane asked when they arrived at 5 o clock, however he knew he needn't ask. The dejection on Syaoran's face said it all.  
"I'm sorry Sakura-hime." He said weakly. "We tried but after a while we stopped understanding each other, and without Mokona to translate OR locate…" She just smiled, having expected this.  
"It's okay! Really it's not your fault Syaoran-kun, we had Mokona and we STILL didn't find the feather." Not that they had actually been looking. "Come on." She beckoned them and hurried up the stairs to their hotel room, however she hadn't gone in when the others caught up. She handed the hotel key (whose idea was it to give Princess Get-Lost-A-Lot the key?) to Fay. He opened the door and was momentarily taken back.

Across the lounge was a banner reading 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY' and several hand-drawn (Sakura and Mokona) posters, one including a wizard and what looked to be a rice ball with ears, and one which Kurogane had repeatedly tried to destroy, of two puppies, two kitties and the aforementioned rice ball with ears. Balloons of various colours, shapes and sizes blocked the view from the window, aswell as huge blue and white rosettes. On the table a big blue cake read '21' in slightly sloppy white icing, as though it had been made in a hurry. Party poppers and confetti lay on the coffee table and chair arms. And for the briefest of moments Fay's mask faltered and he looked like he was about to cry.  
"Happy birthday Fay-san!" Sakura chimed breaking him from his reverie.  
"Yeah uh… happy birthday." Syaoran said shaking his head a little confusedly. How had he been the only one not to know?  
"Sakura-chan you didn't have to go through all this trouble!" Fay said. However Sakura's beam made him look at her curiously.  
"It was mostly Kurogane-san. He did the organizing and actual decorating." She admitted. "I just picked out decorations." Kurogane gave a gruff nod before disappearing from the lounge.  
"I MADE THE CAKE!" Mokona squawked. Fay smiled weakly and looked at the clock.

If someone had asked you how you wanted to spend your last 24 hours alive, you may have responded with an angry 'WHO THE HELL ARE YOU THREATENING?'… but if you were to take them seriously I'm sure a large majority of people would have liked Fay's turn of events. He was surrounded by loved ones (all getting slightly tipsy, in an amusing way, Kurogane had unsuccessfully limited their alcohol intake) in a warm building, feeling more like a family than he'd done in years. Several glasses of sake, half a cake, and one plant-yelling-at (Syaoran) later, it was one AM. In a perfect mimicry of last night Sakura had passed out (this time due to too much to drink, and meowing herself to exhaustion's limit) and Kurogane and Fay took her to bed. Syaoran, though inebriated had enough about him to at least get to his bedroom on his own, before falling asleep ontop of Mokona (who was too drunk to actually care). Fay gently kissed Sakura goodnight, whispered something sweet in her ear, before disappearing for a moment inside Syaoran and Mokona's room. When he came out, he looked weaker than Kurogane had ever seen him. Perhaps the curse was already taking effect… maybe alcohol, could be emotional instability?  
"Said your goodbyes?" He asked, folding his arms and leaning against a wall. Fay nodded slowly. "You said you wanted to go in your sleep… you should probably go to bed then." Fay nodded again, then looked at the room, which was in slight disarray. "I'll clean it up in the morning. It'll give me something to do." Kurogane continued, for the third time the magician only nodded, somewhat annoying his friend. "If you want something then ask." He grumbled.  
"It's not what I want… it's what I don't want." He placed his hand shakily on his bedroom door handle, before looking at Kurogane. "I don't want to be alone during this."

Without a word, Kurogane leaned forward and opened the door.  
"You won't be. I'm right there." And he followed the blond into the room. Fay changed into his Pyjama's slowly, and Kurogane didn't bother, Fay laid the four letters on his desk, and Kurogane didn't look, Fay sat on the bed, and Kurogane avoided his gaze. Finally… Fay cried, the gentle gasping noises getting Kurogane's attention. Silvery tears trickled down his pale face, his cheeks red from a combination of alcohol and effort, his companion didn't know what to say. To tell him everything would be alright was insincere, because it wouldn't be. He had an hour and a half before he was dead…

"I don't want to go." He whispered eventually. "I don't want to leave you." Kurogane chose to take 'you' as 'all of you' rather than 'You, Kurogane' because really it was the only way he could stay sane at the moment.  
"True strength means facing the things you don't want to." He sighed, repeating Syaoran's words. Fay nodded slowly and turned out the light, hiccupping softly with each new sob. "I've always told you." He added, as an afterthought, despite his strength the ninja found his voice trembling as his eyes adjusted. "Your past doesn't matter to me. But I never said 'Neither does your future,' it's all about this moment. The here and the now." He whispered. Fay stiffened then shook his head, as though determined not to hear it.  
"You can read your letter as soon as you like." He lay, shaking, but no sooner had his head touched the pillow, than Kurogane, his protector and savior on more than one occasion wrapped his arms around him gruffly.  
"Shut up and sleep." He mumbled weakly. And somehow, Fay felt that was the romantic thing anyone, anywhere would EVER hear Kurogane say. So he heeded his order, and fell asleep in his arms.

Kurogane didn't sleep. He watched the clock tick past 2, and never once released his grip on the magician. 2:30 came… then 3 a matter of minutes. He got up, and picked up his letter, addressed to 'Kuro-chu!'. He sat back on the bed, re-enveloping the sleeping man in one arm, and was about to open it when the door creaked open. Was this death, come to claim the sleeping blond? With only four more minutes to go it seemed likely….

A/n: I'm so cruel. Reviews get you chapters.


	3. The Price

A/n: I know… I'm a **horrible** HORRIBLE person.

Chapter 3: The price

Kurogane tightened his grip on the sleeping man, and stared at the shadow in the doorway. If death wanted to take Fay physically, it'd have to go through Kurogane first! Physical was his speciality. The shadow loomed closer and began to take shape. It looked like… Like a rice ball with ears. The hell? Blearily he turned on the lamp to see Mokona was there, asleep, but stood none the less in the middle of the room.

"Kurogane." Said a voice. He jumped nearly out of his skin, realising the manjuu bun had projected an image of the dimensional witch Yuuko Ichihara right next to him.  
"Geez can't you call at a sane hour!" He hissed, but seeing the sky behind her he knew it was only early evening where she was.  
"There's not much time." She said bluntly. "Do you want to save him?"  
"Huh… he said…" Kurogane blinked and stared between Yuuko and Fay, still sleeping, blissfully unaware of the congregation. His face was etched with worry though, even in his dreams.  
"I know he said nothing can be done. Once he's dead nothing CAN be done, but for now you can pay to break the curse. They're asleep they can't hear us." She added, seeing him glance worriedly at Fay and Mokona. "Do you want to break it?"  
"Yes." He said simply, glancing at the clock. 3:05am. "What's the price?"  
"The curse is powerful." She said, not bothering to hurry herself. "I need something from you… of equal power… equal strength."  
"My sword?" He suggested, it had worked last time. She shook her head.  
"No, it has to be something that you've had from the time Fay was a child, or longer. In this instance from birth. Your masculinity." A smile played across her features.  
"My what?" he asked dumbfounded.

"Your mas-cu-lin-ity." She repeated as though talking to a small child.  
"You're going to eunuchate me?" He queried. With all the witches power, she wanted something fairly simple. No insanely impossible tasks? No magic? Hell half the princesses court had been 'fixed'.  
"Yes… in a way. No… in the long run. I really don't have time to explain. Do you want to pay the price?" She asked. 3:06am. Kurogane knew the magician was lying about being saved, trying to prevent it… but then he remembered Fay's hopelessly lost face when he had confessed he didn't want to go. He didn't care what the price was.  
"I'll pay." He said firmly.  
"Splendid." She said, clapping her hands, then she waved one over a bowl of water she'd apparently had with her the whole time. It bubbled as though boiling, yet no steam arose. The water began to glow a vibrant shade of red, beside him, Fay's breath hitched as the big hand on the clock hit seven. For a sickening moment Kurogane thought he may be too late, but a strange feeling was going on in his stomach.

The bubbling mimicking the water… he seemed to bubble right out of his very own skin, shaking he felt himself contracting in strange places, and expanding in others. The bubbles rose to his chest and sank to his groin, boiling his blood and curling his fingers. His hair seemed to stand on end then flop miserably. It was all in all an uncomfortable and unpleasant sensation. Things were shrinking that shouldn't be shrinking, and he ached in placed he'd never had aches before, an electricity tore through every vein he possessed making him squirm at the awkward movements. Beside him, Fay began to breathe again, completely unaware of the time. Then just as soon as it started the feeling stopped, though he felt a little strange he appeared to be as alive as the magician.

"It may take some getting used to." Yuuko said honestly. Kurogane nodded bluntly, even without a mirror he knew what had happened to him. Looking down at his body he saw breasts where there most certainly shouldn't be breasts, his clothes hung off his form, far too big on him now, he had shrunk at least a foot and generally felt smaller. His hands were tiny in comparison to his normal ones, they were even pretty small compared to Fay's delicate bishonen hands.  
"Yeah I figured that." The newly female Kurogane muttered, she disliked her own voice and glared her nose as though to silence it.  
"You look _**very**_ cute." Yuuko said in a comforting way.  
"Shut up." She mumbled, untangling herself from Fay, still asleep. "All I know is he'd better appreciate this and I'd better still be able to fight or I SWEAR I won't be the only one without a damn penis." She growled, standing up. Her pants fell down immediately, despite having relatively shapely hips for her body size, she was a lot more petite than usual. Even her underwear was too big, she stepped out of the offending garments, and gathered them up, not bothered about decency considering her shirt now went to her knees and hung off her shoulders  
"Goodnight Kuro-chan." She teased.  
"I said shut up." Kurogane huffed, and with that she left the room. Stomping as quietly as she could.

Kurogane wondered… as one would expect her to do, about the repercussions of this decision. Tomoyo would be pleased, when she finally returned to Nihon. She smirked realising that despite the obvious gender reversal, she would still be the 'daddy' because Fay could never be the masculine one in any relationship. Of course Kurogane had meant that in a strictly platonic way… shut up! After an hour of unsuccessful tossing and turning, she wondered how on earth girls' slept at all. Her breasts stuck out at the front, and were uncomfortable to lay on. Stupid girls, why did they complain if these weren't big enough? Though, she supposed if her own were slightly bigger they could act as a cushion and may be comfortable, she vaguely wondered if they could be used as floatation devices in the event of an emergency, and snickered at her own train of though. Finally, at 5am, she fell asleep, on her back, as she'd discovered was easiest. However, the peace was not to last as a yell erupted from the bedroom next to his at 8am.

Sakura and Syaoran rushed out to see what the matter was. Fay was sat up looking incredulously at the clock. Maybe the time zone was different between this world and the world in which the curse was placed on him? But that shouldn't matter it should definitely happen at 3:07 no matter what world he was in.  
"Fay-san what's the matter?" Syaoran asked, half asleep, raising his sword to fight imaginary demons which were apparently ten feet tall, the height he held it at signalling he was not really woken up yet.  
"I… I'm not quite sure." He mumbled.  
"Mmm… Sa-leepy." Mumbled Mokona, who was laid in the middle of the floor for some reason. "Mekkyo!" It squeaked suddenly. "Yuuko was here last night!" Fay glanced at the creature curiously.  
"She was?"  
"Yes! She said she had some very important business here and put me to sleep… I don't remember the rest. I blame the sake." Mokona rubbed its head hopelessly with one of its ears. Fay briefly wondered if he had managed to pay a hefty price in his sleep somehow… but almost automatically knew who did it.

"Where's Kurogane?" He asked, slightly coldly.  
"Probably still in bed." Sakura said, rubbing her eyes. "You shouldn't wake him… he's not too nice on a morning."  
"He's not too nice in general." Mokona giggled. Sakura and Syaoran shared guilty smiles, but Fay was worried, what had that idiot warrior done for him? He had known the price for breaking the curse would be tremendously high and his life was not worth it, which was why he had chosen not to even consult with the dimensional witch. He stood up, and swept the letters off his desk, putting them in a drawer, before going and trying Kurogane's door.

"Open up, NOW Kuro-tan!" He ordered with a loud knock, upon realising it was locked. 'Tan' is a general suffix used for a little girl, but Fay had no way of knowing what lay behind the door. There was a vague grumble from inside, and eventually the door opened, shocking Sakura, Syaoran, Mokona and Fay.  
"Who are you?" Syaoran asked eventually, staring at the woman in front of them. She had short black hair, though it was soft and not quite spiked gel would probably make it stand up fully, she was dressed in an overlarge black T-shirt and Kurogane's robe, and she stared at them with intense red eyes. Her tanned face was pointy and delicate.  
"It's Kurogane." Fay said distastefully surveying the somehow beautiful yet masculine girl. He knew, without having to use magic, that this was Kurogane. "Idiot." He was not however addressing Syaoran, he was speaking to the haughty looking female.  
"Kurogane-san? What happened?" Sakura squeaked, raising her hand to her mouth.  
"You KNOW there's no going back on a deal with that woman!" Fay knew he should be touched that Kurogane had saved him but he felt guilty for the condition she was currently in. He felt confusion and anger welling up insider him.  
"And you knew there was a way out of it!" She countered, just as angry as he was. "You're lucky I gave you a second damn chance when you were so willing to turn your back on us!"

"You didn't even ask my permission!" He growled. Sakura and Syaoran had never seen Fay angry, somehow labouring under the illusion he didn't have negative emotions, however his kitty cat pretence was falling away to be replaced with a furious mother lioness.  
"You said you didn't want to go, that was all the permission I needed!" She snapped, furrowing her eyebrows, now thinned they were not as intense as before, but still got the point across.  
"You always have to go and do something stupid!" The blond said irately.  
"It was important to me!" She growled. Then, realising what she had said there was a moments awkward silence before Fay eventually said  
"You look like an idiot." deciding it was the only form of retaliation he could come up with.  
"So do you." She huffed. "Now all of you get back to bed it's too damn early and we were up late drinking. And I'm not cleaning this mess up!" She said, signalling to the living room, before turning on her bare heel and going back into the room.

"How… why… what on earth?" Syaoran asked, raking his fingers through his hair. Fay sighed.  
"I… don't really want to talk about it." He said after a moment of hesitation. He began to pick up the glasses from last night, vaguely aware of how much they'd drank.  
"I'll… go lay her out some clothes." Sakura said, disappearing into her own bedroom. Mokona decided to 'help', leaving Syaoran and Fay alone again. Fay barely focused as he cleaned up, it was really some kind of a miracle, here he was, more than 5 hours after his time had run out… alive and cleaning (play on 'alive and kicking').  
"You knew something was going to happen." The younger of the two said, helping his mother figure clean the room. "I could tell yesterday something was going on with you two… I won't force you to tell me, but if Kurogane-san was willing to change himself into a girl… he had his reasons." Fay nodded in agreement. Now the initial anger had worn off he felt relieved a little. He was happy to be here, with Syaoran and Sakura… with Mokona. But Kurogane had changed so differently…

Due to the argument he knew she was still the same old angry Kurogane underneath the feminine pretext. This raised many questions in Fay's mind… he'd never discussed his sexuality with his 'family', though he was fairly certain they knew which way he had leaned. He'd never been so inclined as to look at women in that way before, and the fact not so secret object of his affection… now WAS one… well that presented a bit of a problem. He rubbed his temples. He knew that no matter what he said, THAT was the real reason he was angry. Would he still love her, as a her?

She woke up at ten am, thoroughly tired from having been up most of the night.  
"I'm not wearing a dress." She grunted angrily, having shown up to get breakfast still in the T-shirt and only the T-shirt, having decided it was too hot in this world for the overly large night robe.  
"All I own are dresses and skirts." Sakura said sadly.  
"He… she… can borrow some of my spare clothes." Syaoran said. "They may be a little big." Kurogane found herself blushing furiously. Now that he pointed it out she realised he was right, whereas she was still a little taller than Syaoran she was generally thinner and more petite. "Until we go out and get him… her something appropriate. Is that okay Fay-san?"  
"Don't ask me." Fay muttered darkly. "Once daddy's decided something it's done, it doesn't matter what mommy thinks."  
"Damnit shut up or I will hit you." Kurogane said haughtily. "I'm gonna get a shower, then we'll go…" She shuddered. "Shopping." And with that she disappeared into the bathroom. There was a moments pause before Syaoran spoke.  
"The ultimate test, if she's really female, she'll take ages." Sakura pouted at his gentle smirk.

However, she wasn't particularly long. When she came out, her hair, though still the length it had always been flopped and stuck to her face a little, she had a towel around her waist and nothing else, she was blatantly exposed on her top half. Syaoran politely turned away turning a tomato color, Sakura blushed at the awkwardness, Fay glanced at her, uninterested in the sights, and decided he'd have to be the one to speak out.  
"Kuro-myuu, you're a girl now, you have to wear your towel further up." He signalled with his own hands against his own chest, to help her get the message.  
"Whatever." Kurogane said gruffly, without adjusting the towel she went into her room.  
"My…. This may be interesting." Fay said, with an over dramatic sigh.

A/n: End chapter. Yay I didn't kill Fay-San! But… Kurogane… is a girl. sweat drops ya… the things that go on in my mind. I suggest you go read ambidextrous or review this. Take a pick.


	4. Boys and Girls

A/n: I am the queen of mean plot twists. Fluffy KuroFay LAST CHAPTER. It was gonna be lemon but… nyeh maybe I'll write a separate lemon chapter later. Plus it's kind of weird to write Fay with a girl.

Chapter 4:

Trying to part Kurogane with her sword had been a fruitless attempt.

Despite the fact females… people at all… in this world did not carry around swords, the angry Kurogane had insisted until Fay had no choice but to smile and nodweakly. Even when shopping she held it as though ready to strike, ignoring the people staring at her.  
"S'like they'd never seen tits before." Kurogane growled as they all sat down to eat. Sakura blushed, and Syaoran made a point to look away.  
"Kuro-chan I THINK it's the fact an incredibly cute girl is wandering around with a deadly weapon." Fay pointed out. She turned on him, her crimson eyes lit up with infuriation,  
"You wanna lose an eye mage!" She growled. (cough)  
"Ne, Kuro-chuu's bullying me." Fay whined. Mokona giggled and pounced on Kurogane's head, she glowered up at it.  
"I wouldn't 'bully you' if you didn't say damn stupid stuff." She countered, batting furiously at Mokona.  
"Fay's not saying stupid stuff, you ARE an incredibly cute girl carrying a deadly weapon!" Mokona chimed in, not helping at all. Kurogane grabbed it and threw it across the restaurant, causing a bit of a scene. Sakura squeaked and went to fetch it before trouble started.  
"Tcheh." Was all Kurogane said, and started eating.

It was while she was eating that Fay surveyed her with interest. Despite the feminine physique, her attitude was still very much that of the angry warrior he had fallen in love with. He shouldn't find her physically attractive anymore, but she still had an air of Kurogane in all her movements, however lithe and graceful her new body made them seem, that tugged his heart. He remembered accidentally on purpose brushing their hands together, how those battle scarred and calloused hands had sent shivers up and down his spine. He automatically reached forwards and took one of her hands in his.

"Mage you have until the count of 3 to get the hell off of me." Kurogane snapped as Fay traced his fingers over her palms. The scars she'd won through fighting remained, yet most of the roughness was gone, replaced with a silky smoothness that felt alien to Fay, even though it was akin to his own soft skin type. "Damnit let go!" Kurogane yanked her hand back. "Try anything like that again and I will shove your bal…"  
"KURO-RIN NOT INFRONT OF THE CHILDREN!" Fay scolded wagging a finger back and forth tauntingly in front of Kurogane's face. Kurogane grabbed it and held it still, locking gazes with him. She lowered it to their seats and held it in place with a determined glare into his eyes.  
"Shut up… and eat." She ordered in a dark whisper, and began a low conversation with Syaoran, not once letting go of Fay's hand. Whereas Kurogane holding his hand voluntarily would have once thrilled the blond, it now confused him. He didn't know whether to feel happy, disgusted, or angry.

-------------------------------------

Due to past incidents, Fay had always loved wide open spaces… the ability to be free. The hotel had an accessible roof, which, though smelled of stale smoke, gave a beautiful view of the city. At present it was sunset, the sky a fiery red illuminating everything in sight with a bright orange light cast from the heavens. It had been a few days since Kurogane's transformation, and the two had barely spoken at all. Fay sat on top of a power-box, long legs spread before him, he tilted his head back and let the wind casually lick at his hair.  
"I guess I just don't see why." He mused, enjoying the cool breeze, providing relief if only a little. He heard the rooftop door go behind him but didn't look up. The designated smoking area was here, so he was often interrupted.  
"Why what?" Asked a gentle voice. He looked up to see Sakura standing there, her red dress being tussled by the wind.  
"Hm? Oh nothing Sakura-chan. It's nothing." His fake smile in place as resolutely as ever.  
"Fay-san?" She asked gingerly, approaching him. "You seem… very sad recently. Is it because of Kurogane-san?" She asked, stopping just short of the power box. Fay stared at the sunset, before nodding very slowly.  
"You're a clever girl Sakura-chan. Yes. Right now Kuro-baka's actions are very upsetting to me."  
"If… if it's okay to state my opinion." Her voice tentative and uncertain. "You're being very shallow right now." Fay was shocked to hear such words from Sakura, and raised an eyebrow. She was usually very careful as not to offend people.

"Shallow?"  
"Yes. She did it for you… right? I don't know the details… maybe I'm too young to understand." She mumbled, barely more than whispering now. "But I know that however confusing this is for you… it's a HUGE sacrifice for her. So you have to stop this. It's okay to be sad… or even angry. Fay-san, this isolation is NOT okay… you're making us all very sad." There was a long pause before she sighed. "I think… you're being just a little selfish, because you're not the only one affected."  
"I hate him." Fay said eventually.  
"I think hate… and love are human nature. I mean when we're born… all we know to do is hate, love and want. I think… I think sometimes there is a VERY fine line between love and hate sometimes." Fay stood up, ready to walk away from the conversation. "And I think… regardless of Kurogane-san's gender… you definitely don't hate him." Fay froze.

"Sorry… it's not my place to give advice." She mumbled, seeming to think she had overstepped the mark. He turned to her, her head hung.  
"Sakura-chan…" And before she could respond. He embraced her. She was shocked but returned the hug. "You're certainly wise beyond your years."

-------

"I don't think there even is a feather in this world!" Fumed Kurogane after another uneventful day, that had consisted of shopping and little else. "I think that damn manjuu just likes this world and has decided that this one would make a perfect home for mommy, daddy and the brats to settle down in!" She growled.  
"Now now Kuro-tan don't put the blame on Mokona." Fay said, coming out of Sakura's room, however his stern face was quickly replaced by a pair of very gentle blue eyes and a small twitchy smile. "I never thought I'd get to put them to bed again." He smiled softly. "Thank you."  
"Damn straight." She muttered "Maybe now you'll appreciate that whereas your life may not matter to you it matters to other people. For a 'good guy' you're pretty damn selfish." She folded her arms across her chest, but her breasts got in the way making it look all the more haughty instead of the disinterested and slightly fed up speciality she'd been going for.

"I hate this body. And what's with the men in this town staring at me all the time! Like they wanted to eat me alive or something!" She complained, sitting down.  
"Kuro-rin, they did that when you were male." Fay said pointedly, taking a seat on the couch beside her.  
"The hell they did!"  
"One did." Fay said, raising his hand a little guiltily. Kurogane took a deep breath and nodded.  
"Yeah… I know you did." She mumbled. She had known, by Fay's over enthusiastic displays of affection and playful flirting that there had been an attraction of some sorts, but had at some point on their journey decided to determinedly ignore it. She had wanted to wait until he said something, knowing how skittish he was with other people, he would have to make the first move or nothing could happen. If he'd come onto the magician… he knew Fay's fight of flight technique would have made him run

However, now the situation had been brought right in front of her, she didn't seem to have a choice other than confrontation. "And now?"  
"Now?" Fay asked, raising an eyebrow.  
"Do you still… Agh forget it." She shrugged waving it off. Fay's eyes had glazed over, as though he was thinking deeply, which was the complete opposite of what Kurogane had wanted. Over-thinking could lead to dangerous things where the blond was concerned.  
"I really shouldn't." Fay answered the unasked question with a gentle voice and a serious expression. "In every way shape and form… there is no denying you're female now…" The magician stared intensely at the warrior woman, who glared back in response.  
"And you're only into men?" She questioned, raising one eyebrow dangerously.  
"Well…theoretically yes." Fay nodded. "But…"

"But what?" Demanded Kurogane who was, at this point more than a little pissed off. She had waited rather patiently for this man to voice his feelings, and patient was something she'd never been very good with, only to be turned down at the last minute. It was incredibly frustrating and she found herself half wanting to punch the magician, and half wanting to cry. Wait… ew girly thought where the hell'd that come from?  
"But... perhaps… love transcends gender?" Fay suggested with a teasing smile. "It's my hope that some day… you'll look like you again… but looks aren't important, right now you could be missing an arm and you'd still be Kuro-tan." (cough) The smile wasn't a mask this time, for the first time it felt truly genuine and directed completely at Kurogane.  
"Fine." Kurogane nodded bluntly.  
"Hot-headed, angry, stubborn and self sacrificing. It doesn't matter what she looks like. Kuro-myuu is still Kuro-myuu." The blond lay his head very gently on Kurogane's shoulder and she glared.  
"If you're going to say stupid girly sentimental stuff… you could at least use my name." She raised her hand and ran it through Fay's hair, messing it up just the right amount.  
"Kuro-chan?" Suggested Fay playfully.  
"Shut up." She grumbled.

Fay nuzzled his head gently into the crook of Kurogane's neck, and without warning she pulled him onto her lap. She held his hips in place with one hand, while using the other to cup his face. It was interesting how, despite her now being the smaller, more delicate of the two, she was still in control. Fay's eyes never left hers as her thumb swept over his cheekbone and across his lip. He nipped shyly at the digit, kissing it gently. Kurogane growled and kissed Fay's throat, causing the blond to gasp. Fay kissed the cheek closest to him, and tried to bend his head a little to capture Kurogane's lips. However just before he could do that Kurogane panicked considerably, and pushed him off forcefully.  
"THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!" She demanded.  
"Well I _**was**_ going to kiss you." Said Fay with a cheeky grin, as though it was obvious.  
"KISS ME!?" She screamed as though it were a foul swear. "Like hell you were I don't wanna get pregnant you psychopathic magician!" She fumed, and stomped off to her bedroom. Fay stared after the girl in slight shock, knowing that he loved her, yet knowing there was a definite reason he preferred her as a man.  
"I think… we need to have a serious talk about how boys and girls work." He mumbled, smiling to himself.

END

A/n: Kuro-rin's an idiot. Poor thing he really doesn't know how women work. I may need some kind of a sequel to this anyways coz… Kuro-pon's still a girl and that's… a little strange.


End file.
